1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to exterior vehicle mirror assemblies, and more particularly, to a sliding detent joint for large commercial vehicle mirror assemblies that allows for multi-axis movement at the detent joint to accommodate misalignment between a mounting bracket and mirror head support arm when mounted to the vehicle while maintaining the proper detent function between the mounting bracket and mirror head support arm to hold the mirror assembly in a desired position.
2) Description of Related Art
Exterior mirror assemblies are known to include a detent connection joint between a mounting bracket attached to the vehicle and a support arm carrying the mirror head so that the mirror can be selectively positioned and held in place. However, manufacturing variances for large exterior vehicle mirror assemblies typically result in some degree of misalignment between the two detent surfaces when mounted to the vehicle. In some cases the parts are flexible enough to accommodate slight misalignment. This, however, leads to line and point contact location in the detent joint that create premature wear and tear on the joint. This wear will eventually cause the detent joint to loosen over time from vibration and fail to hold the mirror assembly in the selected position. In other cases, the mirror assembly system will not accommodate any misalignment and results in poor or limited detent performance when mounted to the vehicle.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,715,377 (Brouwer) shows a movement mechanism comprising a spherical holder and a spherical bowl which cooperate through various ridges and grooves to selectively move about an X-axis or a Y-axis. There is no disclosure of a detent mechanism or that this arrangement would be adaptable to connecting a mirror support arm to a mounting bracket.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,432,640 (Gilbert et al.) shows a mirror assembly pivotal about one axis. The mirror assembly cannot pivot in multiple directions and does not disclose accommodating misalignment between components.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,896,436 (McDevitt) shows a mounting hub 18 rotated about an X-axis and Y-axis. There is no disclosure of a detent mechanism as part of the joint assembly to hold the position of the unit that would be adaptable to vehicle mirror assemblies.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,186,905 (Brudy) shows a truck mirror that includes a detent member with grooves and complementary engaging member that includes spaced projections. Axial compression of a spring moves the grooves into engagement with the projections. There is no disclosure in the specification of any tolerance for misalignment in this arrangement. Movement of this detent mechanism is limited strictly to a single vertical axis which would not address the problem of multi-axis misalignment between the support arm and mounting bracket.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,081,546 (Bottrill) shows a vehicle exterior mirror that includes detent formations that includes a compression spring. Misalignment is prevented by allowing a wobble in the washer connector. There is no disclosure of cooperating surfaces on the detent mechanism that adjust to allow for multi-axis movement.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,137,715 (Schuurmans et al.) shows an external vehicle mirror that includes cooperating engaging members to form a detent arrangement, and a spring adapted to hold the detent arrangement engaged. There is no disclosure of cooperating surfaces on the detent mechanism that adjust to accommodate misalignment.
None of the cited patents or known prior art teach a detent joint for a mirror assembly that allows for multi-axis rotation while maintaining proper detent resistance. Thus, there is a need for improvement in the art to provide a detent joint for exterior mirror assemblies that maintains a proper detent connection while preventing uneven wear by accommodating misalignment.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a detent joint connection that will forgive misalignment between a mounting bracket and support arm when mounted to a vehicle.